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Raise your hand if a brand has ever reached out to you and said, "Hey, I love your show! I love your content, and I want to work with you."
As a content creator, I know it's your dream to be approached by a brand.
But, what do you need to do? How do you pitch all of the different things you can do for them? What is the most important thing to consider before reaching out?
Paddy McGill is here to save the day.
Paddy is an expert in partnerships and affiliate marketing with over a decade of experience. He knows exactly what it takes to stand out when approaching or responding to brands with your idea or proposal.
Whether you are an influencer, creator, or entrepreneur, Paddy's goal is to help you find your next revenue or lead-generating partnership.
In this episode of Lights Camera Live, we're talking about five strategies you can use to build relationships with partners and brand affiliates. Paddy will share his top tips for reaching out and standing out when collaborating with brands, whether it's videos, webinars, courses, or anything that can be monetized.
By the end of this episode, you will know exactly what to do to make sure your dream brand says YES.
What do brands look for when building relationships with partners?
First things first: if you create content, just know that right now is a creator economy. Brands can try to spend as much money on ads as they want, but if they don't have that "know, like, or trust factor" with audiences, it doesn't matter.
And, that's where content creators come to the table.
As a creator, there are a few things you need to keep in mind about what brands are looking for when building relationships with partners.
First, always be crystal clear and understand exactly who your audience is and who your customers are, especially in a pitch email or direct message. Paddy gave a great example of an email he recently received from a creator wishing to partner with Restream.
The creator was a YouTuber with 1 billion views on their videos and 3 million followers. While having access to that potential reach is fantastic, they didn't answer a critical question in their pitch: Who is their audience, and why would their audience be a great fit for this potential partnership?
“Never assume that your audience is a perfect fit for a potential partnership. Always be crystal clear on who your audience is and who you serve.”
When you understand who you want to serve, it'll be much easier for you to find brands or businesses to partner with because you will have similar ideas and values.
Not only can you implement this technique for overall brand partnerships, but you can work it into pitch emails to other course creators, entrepreneurs, or digital marketers with whom you want to work.
Other questions to ask yourself before reaching out to a potential partner include:
What is your mission?
What do you stand for?
Who is your ideal audience?
What are your values and why are they aligned with you?
How to stand out when pitching to brands
Once you've answered these questions, you need to focus on standing out to brands in your pitch emails. They likely receive and review hundreds of potential sponsorship requests a day.
One way to stand out from the competition is by putting together a media kit. Taking the time and extra effort to create a media kit to show why you're an excellent fit for a brand partnership is what will set you apart from your competition, who are likely just cold messaging brands looking for sponsorships.
In the kit, you should include your biography, website/social media traffic and statistics, relevant case studies from past partnerships, and of course, contact information. The more information you can provide to a potential sponsor or brand right off the bat shows you care about working together (not just about a follower count.)
Case studies are an excellent way to show brands what you can do. Pick a similar brand you have worked with and create a few simple graphics showing your content messaging, outreach strategies, and the end results of the campaign.
Another element to include in your media kit is the size of your email list, Facebook group, or another community you can directly contact. Those statistics are huge for brands to see that you have the ability to contact 500 or even 1,000+ people directly.
Additionally, an introduction video is an excellent way to go above and beyond for a potential partnership. It's simple to create with a platform like Loom or Restream.
By creating a video, you also get to show the brand the type and quality of content you create. In the introduction video, make it about the brand, not yourself. Explain what's in it for them and how you can help them achieve their goals.
“Don’t be afraid to network with other creators and influencers, and connect them with brands when it’s a good fit. Try and make it a win for everyone.”
Some brands you reach out to may not even have their partnership program fully developed. As the content creator, this is your opportunity to take the lead and say, "Yes, I've done this before. I'm organized, I have my assets, and I can onboard you as a partner." Being assertive when taking the lead helps put the brand at ease, knowing they're in good hands.
Above all else, when reaching out to brands, you want to show how you can help them. Whether they have a current or potential problem, provide a solution. Create specific (not generalized) content just for their brand. By showing them the value you offer, it'll be much easier for them to say yes and to invest in your content.
Additionally, don’t forget: there are resources in relationships. If you don't think you're the right fit for a brand partnership, but you know someone who is, connect them! Give another person the opportunity to make a difference for that brand.
To conclude, let's talk about one final tip. If you use different tools and software as a content creator, look into affiliate programs. Many websites have a specific set of tracking links, which you can use for a reverse search to find out who is a part of their affiliate program.
Another unique idea is to add a Perks page to your website for easy access to all of the brands you work with. Remember, your goal is to make this partnership as simple as possible for your ideal brand.
Take the next step with brand partnerships
Brand deals are so much more than sponsored posts. Brand partners aren't just getting access to you and your followers. They're also getting your reputation and trust.
As a creator, you should focus on building out a whole system for a brand partnership. Ask the brand manager, "What is the biggest problem that you or your customers face?" Then, figure out how to solve their problem with your content and brand strategy.
When you figure out how to provide brands with a solution to their problem, you'll win them over every time.
Now, let's take the next step with brand partnerships.
Take a look at your past deals and identify one customer or one potential partner that you haven't worked with before, but that has access to the type of customer you want.
Reach out to them.
Determine what their biggest problem or gap in content is, and offer them a solution. Then, work with them through an affiliate channel. If you can do that, you'll be able to land other deals for yourself, such as:
Live streams
Guest blog posts
Lead magnet swaps
Newsletter shout outs
Joint venture webinars
And so much more.
Are you ready to take your partnerships to the next level?
Follow and connect with Paddy on LinkedIn. Or, if you are a content creator, reach out with a brand pitch and contact Paddy via email. He will happily give you some honest feedback and constructive criticism.
Are you ready to learn more about NLP training?
If you want to ignite your ideas, be brilliant in the boardroom, and Captivate on Command, then enroll in our upcoming NLP Practitioner training.
It's a full seven-day intensive training to help you take your business to the next level. When you sign up, you also get me as your master coach to guide you along the way with monthly one-on-one coaching sessions.
Remember, you have to learn to invest in yourself in order to have people invest in you.
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